In 1976, Trinidad and Tobago amended its 1961 constitution. The 1976 draft preserved the bicameral legislature but replaced the crown-appointed governor-general with a ceremonial president chosen by parliament.
The House of Representatives is the more important of the two houses. Its 36 members are elected for five-year terms, but new elections can be called by the prime minister or by the house itself in a vote of "no confidence" in the cabinet. The party with a majority of seats in the House forms the government. The Senate consists of 31 members all appointed by the president, 16 on the advice of the prime minister, six on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and nine discretionary, based on consultation with various religious, economic, and social groups.
The head of the government is the prime minister, who is leader of the majority party. Cabinet ministers are appointed primarily from the House of Representatives by the president, acting on the prime minister's recommendations.
Active participation in government by the nonwhite (black and East Indian) population began in 1925, when for the first time elected representatives were included in the otherwise appointed Legislative Council that ruled the colony. Over the years the proportion of elected members increased and a fully electoral self-government came in December 1961. In 1976, suffrage was lowered to the age of 18.